Unless you've been living on another planet for the last few years you will have at least heard of the world-wide hit that is Heroes - the series that has spawned novels, graphic novels, actions figures, t-shirts and CDs. If somehow you have managed to miss the first incredible series of Heroes fear not, as it is on DVD and can be picked up at a very reasonable price.
What Is Heroes About?
Heroes is about the lives of people who have found that they have special powers that set them apart from normal folk. The series follows their lives as they try to hide said powers and what happens when they meet others of their kind. No-one yet knows why some people have these special powers in the Heroes Universe, but there are bigger problems for them to deal with right now - from controlling their powers to figuring out who it is safe to trust their secret with. And of course there is the problem that not everyone who has these amazing powers is going to want to use them for good.
Blending together the style of comic books (From the chapters for titles to the comic-style font used for captions) with a host of in-jokes for the more vigilant viewers to pick up on, Heroes is a sci-fi show with a difference. It has captured the imaginations of regular viewers and sci-fi fans alike, and done so in a clever and modern way without being over the top or cheesy.
Where Is Heroes Set?
Primarily Heroes is set in America, where most of our characters hail from - focussing particularly on Texas, Los Angeles and New York. Japan also features heavily in this first season as three important characters are Japanese, Hiro (Franklin in Scrubs), his father Kaito Nakamura (Sulu in Star Trek) and Hiro's friend Ando.
Who Is In Heroes?
Heroes has a rather large and ever-changing list of characters, but to avoid confusion here are the most important reoccurring characters of the first season. There are many more characters that you will see who are important to the story but you will see that as you watch.
Hiro Nakamura (Masi Oka): A personal favourite of mine for his innocence and belief that everything should work out okay in the end, Hiro hails from Japan and works for his father's company as an office grunt. He hates his job and loves comic books and Star Trek. His power is that he can manipulate time and space, allowing him to teleport himself (Most notably into the ladies bathroom), travel through time and slow down/stop time at will.
Ando Masahashi (James Kyson Lee): Hiro's beast friend and a fellow office grunt, he too loves comic books and Star Trek. He also has an overly perverted interest in women, even though they never go for him. He has no powers and feels like Hiro's sidekick, which occasionally bothers him.
Claire Bennet (Hayden Panettiere): The best known phrase from Heroes is "Save the cheerleader, save the world" - well here is the cheerleader. Pretty, blonde and looks like butter wouldn't melt, this Texas teen is hiding a huge secret power that will save her and others time and time again. Her power is that she is essentially impervious to harm due to her ability to heal - there is only one way to kill her and that is to take off her head.
Noah Bennet (Jack Coleman): Otherwise known as H.R.G (Horn Rimmed Glasses). Mild-mannered middle class worker and father of Claire, Noah isn't all that he seems as he works secretively for a mysterious group called the company. He knows a lot about people with super abilities and disappears mysteriously often. He has no special power but this doesn't make him any less of a force to be reckoned with.
Nathan Petrelli (Adrian Pasdar): A member of the hugely powerful Petrelli family, he's also a politician who is running for congressman. His ambition exceeds his morals and like all politicians he has done some less than honourable things in his fight for congress. After his brother has vivid dreams of being able to fly Nathan has to fly in and save him from certain death - literally. Nathan's power, if that isn't already clear, is that he can fly.
Peter Petrelli (Milo Ventimiglia): The younger brother of Nathan and a much nicer man, he is a nurse for an old and dying man whom he cares for deeply. After being driven mad by dreams that he can fly he attempts it, throwing himself off a building forcing his older brother to save him. Though after this happens Peter can fly he couldn't before. His power is that he can absorb/mimic the abilities of others after having touched them, hence why after touching his brother he could fly. He can also hold more than one ability making him a very powerful man.
Isaac Mendez (Santiago Cabrere): The tortured and passionate artist Isaac is an incredible painter; his studios are filled with jaw-dropping works of art. The problem is that the only time he can paint is when he is out of his skull on heroin, and when he does paint he paints apocalyptic images of the future. This would all be fine if it weren't for one thing - Isaac's power is that of precognition, he sees the future. If only he could see a happier future.
Matt Parkman (Greg Grunberg): Ah Matt, he is a really good guy. Matt is a cop for the LAPD with a marriage on the rocks at home. He always wants to do the right thing and that is never enough. Sadly for Matt, his power is telepathy - and reading minds is never a fun power to have, especially when you can hear what your angry wife is really thinking.
Niki Sanders (Ali Larter): Mother to Micah, Niki will do anything to make ends meet and keep her young son safe - including stripping for webcams. Not the classiest of jobs but this girl isn't a tramp; she just doesn't want her son to go without. She has both a power and a problem, he power is that she has fantastically enhanced strength - the problem is that there is another side of her that is desperate to get out and use her power for her own ends.
Micah Sanders (Noah Gray-Cabey): The cutest cast member by far, little Micah is a child of many depths. He is compassionate, intelligent and has a power that many would kill to have in this technological age - he can control machines and talk to them. If ever you want a red light to change, this is the boy to have along with you.
Mohinder Suresh (Sendhil Ramamurthy): The charming and geeky Mohinder comes to America after his father is killed to pack up his work, which he finds out was about people with special powers and their locations throughout the world. It turns out that though these people are in the minority there are many more than we will ever see in the seasons of Heroes and with his interest piqued he sets out to help them find out why they are the way they are, and why his father was killed.
Sylar AKA Gabriel Gray (Zachery Quinto): The frightening and mysterious Sylar has some serious problems, and also some seriously good powers. He is a very angry and envious man who doesn't let anything get in the way of him acquiring new powers - even having to kill those with powers he craves is not a problem. His powers are very similar to those of Peter Petrelli in that he can acquire the abilities of others, but are amplified by his intensely inquisitive mind (which is also one of his powers - a need to know how everything works). This is a man you should never turn your back on.
Episodes:
In the first season of Heroes there were 23 episodes, each lasting 45 minutes which when shown in America obviously had breaks in order for advertisements to be show - without much effort you can see where they stopped for a commercial break. As in the UK it is shown on the BBC we get to enjoy our 45 minutes of geekiness without interruption.
Chapter One "Genesis": In a busy opening episode we are introduced to the Petrelli's when Peter decides to jump off a roof to prove his dream right and Nathan has to come to his rescue. Claire Bennet, the Texas cheerleader, who knows that she is virtually indestructible, saves a fire-fighter from a dangerous and out of control train fire and runs before anyone can give her the glory she deserves. Mohinder Suresh arrives in New York after the death of his father whilst in Japan Hiro's boredom and clock-watching finally becomes useful at work, much to the astonishment of his friend Ando. Isaac paints horrendous pictures of the future under the influence of drugs and Niki has some problems with her dark side after a run in with some mobsters she owes money to. The mobsters certainly won't be a problem now.
Chapter Two "Don't Look Back": Niki wakes up and has to deal with the aftermath of her run in with the mobsters, but with a little help from her friend clears up the mess. Peter wakes up confused in the hospital where he is told his father has killed himself due to depression. Hiro tests out his newly found powers a little more and teleports to Times Square where he buys a comic book by Isaac that seems to show him what his destiny is through a very familiar face. Matt gets to be the hero at work due to his abilities whilst a video of Claire's gets into the wrong hands.
Chapter Three "One Giant Leap": Hiro, armed with his comic book bible returns to Japan to persuade Ando to join him in his mission to save the world. Nathan hurts Peter's feelings when he publicly declares he's crazy and Peter also struggles in his latest attempt to fly. Claire winds up in a morgue in the middle of an autopsy - how will she explain things when it was her autopsy that was being done?
Chapter Four "Collision": Hiro and his side-kick friend Ando travel to Vegas, where Niki is being held by a mob boss who is rather upset about the events of the first episode and still wants his money back. Meanwhile back in New York Peter and Mohinder meet for the first time, and in Texas after the madness of the morgue Claire has another dark moment to face with a football player who doesn't seem to understand that no means no.
Chapter Five "Hiros": Niki is interrogated by police after it is found that her imprisoned husband D.L has escaped (and in a very interesting way) and Matt's abilities finally start to help him at home with his wife when he listens in to what she wants. Claire decides to confide in her father Noah about her ability, little knowing how dangerous that could be and Mohinder thinks about leaving America.
Chapter Six "Better Halves": Hiro and Ando start on their journey to New York but are given a deal by a Vegas gambler. Noah helps Claire with her questions about her real parents by organising a meeting with them. Isaac is confused once more by a call warning him about his life, but finally the important message gets to him with the help of a Petrelli.
Chapter Seven "Nothing To Hide": Claire's secret is found out by another family member who watches the video she stupidly filmed of herself proving her powers by trying to kill herself many times, will he keep his mouth shut or is this the end of the line for our super cheerleader? Hiro helps a fugitive save an innocent woman with his strengthening powers whilst on his way to New York and Isaac disappears leaving only a frightening vision of what is to come at his studio.
Chapter 8 "Seven Minutes To Midnight": With Mohinder back in India for the burial of his beloved father he begins having strange dreams about his family and questions his leaving his father's work behind in America. A potential problem is encountered by the name of Ted, whose sad tale makes him both a tragic figure and a possible danger to not just the city, but the entire world.
Chapter Nine "Homecoming": Its Homecoming time in Texas, a big time for a teenage girl but Claire has other matters to attend to. Hiro falls in love fast with a sweet waitress and decides to use time travel to save her from a sad end and learns that sometimes, no matter how much you want to, you can't save someone.
Chapter Ten "Six Months Ago": Exactly as the title says, this takes place six months previous to the current storyline, Claire is about to become a cheerleader, Hiro finds out why he can't save the woman he loves and the Petrelli brothers plan to take down their massively powerful and not particularly nice father. Mohinder's father Chandra is alive and in America looking for people with extraordinary abilities as he believes that rather than being freaks of nature they may have merely evolved faster than the rest of us and be the next step in our evolution - it is during this time that Chandra meets Sylar, a man who can move things with his mind. But Sylar has another reason for meeting Chandra, namely getting information on where others with powers are.
Chapter Eleven "Fallout": So the cheerleader has been saved, so that means the world is safe right? Well that's the question on our Heroes lips as they ponder whether this changes what Issac painted previously. Noah shows a rather different side if himself to usual after capturing or enigmatic psycho Sylar, looking him in a pitch black room. However is this a smart thing to do to someone who has the power to take over the world? Would you want to upset someone who will slice open your skull?
Chapter Twelve "Godsend": As Hiro searches for a particular sword from Isaac's paintings that he believes is key to saving the world, Nathan is desperate to get help for his younger brother who is currently unconscious and Niki is also desperate for help, though the police refuse to believe her when she tells them what it is that is wrong with her.
Chapter Thirteen "The Fix": After the police are shown the more dangerous side of Niki she is sedated and later visited by a psychiatrist who wants her to confront her darker personality - big mistake. Mohinder is begged by Nathan to try and help Peter control his newly absorbed power. Noah goes to a hidden laboratory where he has Sylar's corpse but gets the surprise of his life when he sees who is waiting for him.
Chapter Fourteen "Distractions": Having unravelled the web of lies surrounding her biological mother Claire begins to find it hard to keep up with the lies she's telling her father Noah. Hiro's powerful and wise father Kaito arrives to bring Hiro and Ando back to Japan, telling him that his job with the company is more important than searching for a sword that may save the world.
Chapter Fifteen "Run": There's a shock for both Claire and the viewers when her biological father's identity is revealed, and back at the Bennet house her adoptive mother is having problems. Hiro and Ando's quest for the sword is put on hold when they have to rescue someone; meanwhile Mohinder speaks to someone on his father's list of people with powers and puts himself in serious danger. But who is it on Chandra's list that Mohinder has gotten involved with?
Chapter Sixteen "Unexpected": Ted makes another appearance, turning Matt's life upside down in the process. Peter finds that he may have been betrayed and Hiro has to make a tough decision about the future of his mission and the quest for the sword. Claire is struggling with a great rage towards her father, but will the teen lash out?
Chapter Seventeen "Company Man": Ted and Matt turn up in Texas looking for Noah, and more importantly answers. To make sure they get them they take Noah's wife, son and Claire hostage to get what they want. But with Ted's radioactive powers becoming increasingly out of control in this tentative situation a tragic confrontation is in store for the Bennets.
Chapter Eighteen "Parasite": The election for congress is looming, as is the obliteration of New York - and instead of trying to save the city Nathan is in a cloak-and-daggers meeting with the mysterious Linderman (Played by Malcolm McDowell). Suresh, undeterred by his last experience with someone from his father's list, manages to find out something useful - but it isn't all good news. Isaac, our friendly neighbourhood future painter paints a new painting, and if the Heroes thought that any other the previous paintings were horrifying they haven't seen anything yet!
Chapter Nineteen ".07%": Not realising Sylar's true nature, Mohinder continues to let him help track down people with abilities. Now that couldn't go wrong in any way could it? Whilst his rampage continues, Nathan has to make big decisions that will affect not just him and the Petrelli family, but the world at large.
Chapter Twenty "Five Years Gone": Much as the "Six Months Ago" episode, this instalments title has a very literal meaning. Hiro and Ando take us five years into the future we see that things have gone very very wrong, encountering a version of Matt never seen before now, a brunette and very trigger-happy Claire Bennet and a Niki who has made peace with her darker side Jessica - sort of.
Chapter Twenty-One "The Hard Part": Back from the dark and unpleasant future, Hiro and Ando set off to find Isaac and see if there is a way to stop the events of the future. Noah, Matt and Ted are meanwhile travelling to New York and Peter tries to stop Claire from going to Paris.
Chapter Twenty-Two "Landslide": Linderman's true colours are revealed in the penultimate episode when he convinces Micah to do something for him whilst Niki and DL try frantically to find him. Peter is trying valiantly to control his newest power whilst tracking Sylar through the streets of New York.
Chapter Twenty-Three "How To Stop An Exploding Man": In an explosive finale to the final season many questions need to be answered. As the Heroes all end up in Kirby Plaza, New York their minds races as they try to save themselves, each other, and the world. Will anyone be able to stop Sylar? Will Peter be able to save the world? Who will have to make sacrifices in order to save it? And of course, how do you stop an exploding man?
Storylines Running Through Heroes
As you can probably tell by now this is a rather complex series even though it is based around a simple premise, this just shows the brilliance of the writers. They have managed to weave together many different story strands that aren't even all set in the same place and it works. Here are the main story strands that you follow:
Claire's Identity: From telling her adoptive parents about her powers to finding out where she comes from, Claire's story is one of discovery of identity and more importantly being able to live happily with it. If you take away her power it is the same story every teenager goes through, this longing to figure out who you are and where you fit in.
Hiro's Maturity: Coming from a proud Japanese family where he lost his mother at a young age, he has become used to doing what other's tell him and not fighting for what he thinks is right. But with his newly-found power and a little help from his best friend he begins to mature into a fully-functioning man who is even able to stand up to his controlling father. No longer a man-child he is willing to fight for what he believes in regardless of what others say with confidence.
The Company: A shadowy group who follow those with powers, they feature heavily in every episode of the first season even though they may not always be mentioned. You learn along the way just how important The Company are and how long they have been running, telling you that people with abilities aren't quite as new as Mohinder and Chandra thought. But the question is, are The Company good or bad?
Sylar's Quest: Perhaps if he had been nurtured more, or if someone had stopped him sooner, Sylar wouldn't have turned out the way he did. But he isn't fully formed and throughout the season the viewer sees how far Sylar will go, sometimes going even further than he had thought possible. Though he is the villain of the piece, in following his journey you get to see that he wasn't born bad, and there is still a glimmer of goodness in him, there is hope - albeit very small.
Saving The World: This is obviously a huge story thread, and it encompasses every Hero at some point. These complete strangers slowly find each other and through this apocalyptic prophecy strive to save the world. At first it appears that all they have to do is save the cheerleader, but when the paintings don't get better it takes more work and sacrifice than any of them had imagined. Every single character does something in order to get to the final showdown in Kirby Plaza, and these small actions are littered through the first series.
Why Should I Watch Heroes?
If you like sci-fi or mysteries you should watch Heroes if you haven't already, the blend of mystery, murder and comic book style sci-fi has made this a ratings winner around the globe, gaining millions of fans. For those who aren't big geeks like myself, why not give it a try anyway - it will make excellent respite from the constant barrage of celebrity game shows and talent competitions. And if nothing else you will oh and ah at the brilliant special effects and make-up, and drool over the host of gorgeous men and women that make up the cast.
This is the show that has essentially made it cool to like sci-fi. Gone are the insults or funny looks that you get when admitting to watching Buffy, Star Trek and the like. This has appeared in teen magazines, had its cast on some of the most famous publications in the world and built an army of fans up that are proud to say they love Heroes. Heroes was the beginning of a new era, where loving the fantastical and mad isn't frowned upon and sci-fi for grown-ups has been allowed to move into the mainstream and no longer has to rely on scantily clad women or soft-core porn to drag in viewers at an obscene time of night. For a generation this is the new Star Trek, and long may it reign.
Final Verdict
This is one of my favourite shows; it mixes real-life with fantastical elements without taking it too far and making it ridiculous. The premise for the entire story is so simple and yet the strands that build it are so diverse and complex that you really have to keep your wits about you whilst watching. The characters have a lot of depth to them, and hidden depths which are seen throughout the season and into the next. I love that they didn't pick overly huge names for their cast - other than of course Malcolm McDowell and George Takei (Who aren't really in huge starring roles in this so it doesn't take over).
Having seen the unaired pilot which had a rather different story I'm eternally glad that they rewrote and came back with this version of "Genesis", as you'll be able to see if you watch the pilot on the DVD things went down a politics/terrorist route that wouldn't have been as interesting and quite frankly in the world these days it's nice not to have to hear the world terrorist for once - there are only so many times that the fate of the world can be ruined due to terrorism after all! The rewrite makes this more of an escape from reality than many American shows can be, and it's nice to see someone go out on a limb and write a sci-fi show at a time when sci-fi wasn't exactly doing great - after all when this first aired Buffy had been long gone, as was Angel and Dark Angel.
This will be an on-going addiction for me TV-wise, and even though later seasons have been a little more strained or lacking (Partly due to the Writer's Strike as you can hear about in the special features of the second season) I still want to see what will happen to the characters. There have been deaths which have touched and saddened me, cliff-hangers where you hope everything will be okay and new additions to the cast who have been just as interesting and important as the founding members. Hopefully with this next season in January 2010 Heroes will be 100% back on form and even more fans will grow to love the show that has spawned fans from every walk of life.
DVD Information And Extra's
This season of 23 episodes is 967 minutes long and spans an impressive 7 disks, it is rated at a 15 - mainly due to violence and a little nudity from Niki though if you have mature teens that are a little younger I wouldn't hesitate in getting them into this show. It may be violent but its intelligent and shows that every action has a consequence - so unlike buying a videogame I wouldn't say the age rating on this is a hard and fast rule. There are a generous handful of extras too:
71-minute pilot episode: Want to see how they were originally going to do things and then breathe a sigh of relief that they didn't? Well here you go! If they had gone for this rather than their redraft it would have been much more of a 24-style show.
Deleted Scenes: Due to time constraints there are always deleted scenes, especially when Tim Kring is involved - he could make a biblical epic seem short!
The Making Of Heroes/Special Effects/The Stunts: How do they do that and why do they do that? 3 features on how they do everything and anything on the set of Heroes.
The Score: A small piece on the musicians that work on Heroes providing not only the theme tune but much of the incidental music that features throughout.
Profile Of Artist Tim Sale: Exactly what it says, this is a profile of Tim Sale who is integral to Heroes.
Audio commentaries with the cast, crew and creator: If you want to know what someone in the cast or crew was thinking during filming, chances are they say it during this. Only really for the most geeky of fans (So, well...me!).
You can buy the box set brand new and sealed for just £9.99 on Amazon. For the amount of entertainment you get it is most definitely worth the small sum, though if you are unsure go onto youtube and watch a few clips to see if it's for you if you've never tried any comic-book style sci-fi before.
"Nurture your mind with great thoughts; to believe in the heroic makes heroes" Benjamin Disraeli
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